To the office, all the afternoon I staid there, and in the evening went to Westminster Hall, where I staid at Mrs. Michell’s, and with her and her husband sent for some drink, and drank with them. By the same token she and Mrs. Murford and another old woman of the Hall were going a gossiping tonight. From thence to my Lord’s, where I found him within, and he did give me direction about his business in his absence, he intending to go into the country to-morrow morning. Here I lay all night in the old chamber which I had now given up to W. Howe, with whom I did intend to lie, but he and I fell to play with one another, so that I made him to go lie with Mr. Sheply. So I lay alone all night.

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Annotations

a-gossiping From the OED:1. A christening or christening-feast. Now dial.

a1627 Middleton Chaste Maid ii. i. Wks. (Dyce) IV. 27 You'll to the gossiping Of master Allwit's child? 1728 Brice's Weekly Jrnl. (Exeter) 30 Aug., Last Sunday Afternoon was celebrated here a Gossipping, or held a jovial Meeting of Good Wives and Sweethearts, to solemnize the Baptism of a Child....2. A meeting of friends and acquaintances, esp. at the birth of a child; also gen. a merry-making.

1557 North tr. Gueuara's Diall Pr. ii. vii. (1568) 96b, They remember more the gossippinges that they haue to go, then their sinnes, which they ought to lament. 1590 Shakes. Com. Err. v. i. 419 Will you walke in to see their gossipping? 1613 Purchas Pilgrimage (1614) 506 They chew these leaves; and in their gossippings or visiting of their friends, they are presented with them. 1721 1800 Bailey s.v., A gossiping, a merry meeting of gossips at a woman's lying in. 1823 Lamb Elia Ser. ii. Child Angel, Methought I was present at an Angel's gossiping....3. a. The action of talking idly, or tattling; an instance of this. b. An assemblage, where thisis the chief occupation.

a Dutch pleasure-boat per L&M: "The yacht Mary, presented to the King by the city of Amsterdam. It was at this period that yachts were introduced into England - together with the word itself - from Holland. Previously, state barges had served as royal pleasure-boats. Charles II, a skilful seaman, himself led the fashion for yacht-sailing."

sent for some drink and drunk with themL&M transcribe the shorthand as drunk instead of drank. Probably Wheatley doing some minor grammatical cleaning up. The shorthand should be quite different: as "drank" the symbol for "nk" would be above the symbol for "dr" while as "drunk" the "nk" would be below. To a modern ear the L&M reading would be quite interesting and fun. I'm not sure the same sense would have applied in SP's day.

"...where I found the King gone this morning by 5 of the clock to see a Dutch pleasure-boat below bridge,[1] where he dines, and my Lord with him..."Identified as "...which was called the “Jenny..." note on Googling up Yacht 1660 and up comes lots on English first Yacht but it was named after His (Carlos rex) sister Mary. [_ model makers delight]http://www.hobbyworldinc.com/woodship12.htmlShe struck a reef and sank in 1675, but her remains were recovered in 1971.beautiful model http://www.pacific-tall-ships.com/Ymary.htm

It is confusing that the note above says Elizabeth had a yacht and Pett in 1604 just after her death, yet L&M say that they were introduced to England at this time. One other note from L&M mentions Charles' habit of rising early, sometimes at dawn, for hunting, sailing or tennis. I too wonder what he and Howe are up too. How innocent was this play?

YachtsSorry about the longish section from the OED but it does seems to concur with the L&M and go against the Wheatley footnote. The sheer number of quotes and the varieties of spelling from the late 16th/early 17th century probably indicate that both the word and the style of ship were relatively unfamiliar. In fact most of the pre-1640 references to the word seem to refer to foreign made vessels and not to any of domestic production or ship intended for domestic use. This conclusion is reinforced by a quote from Pett

Yachts: found in diary not cross ref: oct 1 1661 "... sailed this morning with his Majestie one of his Yaachts(or Pleasure boates) Vessells newly known amongst us, til the Du{c}th {E. India Comp.} presented that curious piece to the king, & very excellent sailing Vessels. It was on a Wager betweene his other new Pleasure boate,builte frigate-like,& one of of the Duke of Yorks, the wager 100 pounds. The race from Greenewich to Graves -end & back: The King lost it going, wind Contrary, but sav'd stakes returning:There were divers noble Person[s] & Lords on board:his Majestie sometimes steering himselfe: There attended his Barge & Kitchen boate: I brake fast this morning with the king, at returne in his smaller Vessell, he being pleasd to take me & onely foure more who where Noble-men with him : but dined in his Yacht, where we all Eate together with his Majestie. In this Passage his Majestie was pleased to discourse to me about my Book inveing against the nuisance of smoke of Lond:..."[ book was Fumigugium: or the the inconveiniencie of the aer and smoak of London dissipated.]

ist xref of yacht: J.Evelyn june 8 1666 "...after dinner went aboard his Majesties pleasure-boate..." appears to be the first mention of JE's diary:

he and I fell to play with one another, so that I made him to go lie with Mr. Sheply

the first definition of play in the oed includes 'brisk and vigorous action of the body and limbs...' the two were probably tossing and turning enough without sleep that sam, howe's boss, ordered him to another kip.

Apart from the "Yacht" (from the dutch word "Jacht" for hunting or racing) he received large sums of money from the city of Amsterdam, according to Brandt, biographer of Michiel de Ruyter , up to onehundredandfyftythousand dutch guilders at the time of his return from Holland.

(He stating that he would "remember the friendship they had shown him for eternity").

Which is interesting for us to read, knowing the two protestant countries will engage again in trade wars in 1667 and 1672.

The second of which was sparked off by the famous incident where the dutch war fleet, anchored in their own waters, failed to lower the flag for a passing Royal Yacht, the Merlin.

HMY Mary was the first Royal Yacht of the Royal Navy. She was built in 1660 by the Dutch East India Company. Then she was purchased by the City of Amsterdam and given to King Charles II, on the restoration of the monarchy, as part of the Dutch Gift. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Gift

‘gossip n. . . 1.d. In relation to one who acts as godfather or godmother on the same occasion: A fellow-sponsor. . . 1666 S. Pepys Diary 2 Dec. (1972) VII. 394, I took my pretty gossip to White-hall with us.

. . 2.b. esp. Applied to a woman's female friends invited to be present at a birth. . . a1661 T. Fuller Worthies (1662) i. 55 They are as good evidence to prove where they were born, as if we had the deposition of the Midwife, and all the Gossips present at their Mothers labours.’

and

‘token n. . . 15. Phrases (in which the sense of token becomes vague): a. by the same token or (somewhat arch.) by this (or that) token : (a) on the same ground; for the same reason; in the same way . . . . 1660 S. Pepys Diary 28 Feb. (1970) I. 70 Up in the morning, and had some red Herrings to our breakfast while my boot-heel was a-mending; by the same token, the boy left the hole as big as it was before.1662 S. Pepys Diary 13 Apr. (1970) III. 64, I went to the Temple to church, and there heard another [sermon]. By the same token, a boy, being asleep, fell down a high seat to the ground.‘